Careers

The Institute for State and Local Governance (ISLG) is an institute within the City University of New York. ISLG’s mission is to assist current and future leaders in government, nonprofit organizations, and the private sector improve the financing, delivery, and measurement of critical public services. ISLG offers research, technical assistance, and education and training to help organizations achieve these improvements.

ISLG is hiring one or more senior research associates to work on various research projects in the Institute’s criminal justice portfolio. These projects involve helping criminal justice partners build data and analytical capacity; overseeing data collection, management, and analysis; developing and implementing performance measurement systems; conducting quantitative analyses of criminal justice data at different system points; and assisting in the development of new research projects. Each senior research associate will report to the research director or associate research director and will work closely with other project staff on project activities. While ISLG is looking for full-time senior associates, part-time applications will also be considered.

Responsibilities

Specifically, each senior research associate will be responsible for some subset of the following:

Developing data requests and data collection protocols for criminal justice agencies, community-based service providers, and other relevant organizations providing data for various Institute-related research projects

Building and managing relationships with government, community, and other partners; and working collaboratively with them on all aspects of the work

Presenting research and policy work to a wide range of audiences

Writing reports, memos, briefs and other materials.

Conducting data and systems reviews

Supervising associate and analyst staff on project work

Traveling to meetings, conferences, and making site-visits, as needed

Senior research associates will also contribute to developing the ISLG’s broader research agenda, together with the Institute’s research director and other senior research staff.

Qualifications

Ph.D. in criminal justice/criminology, sociology, psychology, public administration, public health or social work (ABD and/or M.A. with extensive research and policy experience will also be considered)

Substantial experience (5 years or more) conducting high-quality research in an applied research setting

Expertise in performance measurement

Experience in collecting and working with administrative data (experience with criminal justice data a plus)

Strong understanding of criminal justice policy, including an ability to translate analytical and research findings into policy and practice recommendations

Excellent oral and written communication skills, with the ability to convey complex research findings to broader audiences, and to develop clear, visually-compelling reports for government, non-profit, and private sector partners

Exceptional interpersonal skills with the ability to create and maintain excellent working relationships with government and community partners

A strong commitment to accuracy and attention to detail

Ability to work on a team, as well as independently

Experience supervising staff is a plus

A promising research record, including a record for successful proposal development and/or peer-reviewed publications, is a plus

This is a full-time position with excellent benefits and is located in New York City. Salary range: $75,000–$110,000, depending on research skills and level of experience.

ISLG is hiring a research associate to work on various research projects within the Institute’s criminal justice portfolio. These projects involve helping criminal justice partners build data and analytical capacity; overseeing data collection, management, and analysis; developing and implementing performance measurement systems; conducting quantitative analyses of criminal justice data at different system points; and assisting in the development of new research projects. Most immediately, the position will be split across two primary projects—one national and one local to New York City. The position is full-time.

Position Description

The research associate will report to a senior researcher and will work closely with other project staff on project activities. Specifically, the research associate will support their supervisor and other project staff in the following activities:

Developing data requests and data collection protocols for criminal justice agencies, community-based service providers, and other relevant organizations providing data for various Institute-related research projects.

Conducting diagnostic assessments to better understand agency systems, capacity, gaps, and effective identification of solutions to fill those gaps. This may include system mapping, conducting data and systems reviews, interviews with agency stakeholders, conducting walkthroughs of IT systems, and strategizing ways to operationalize data points into measures for analysis and evaluation.

Helping government partners implement improvements to data and analytical systems.

Assisting research team with grant reporting and development of final project deliverables.

Traveling to meetings, conferences, and making site-visits, as needed.

Qualifications

M.A. or Ph.D. in criminal justice/criminology, psychology, sociology, public policy, or other related fields

At least two years of experience (four or more years preferred) conducting research in an applied research setting

Experience in collecting and working with administrative data (experience with criminal justice data a plus)

Excellent data management and analysis skills, including extensive experience cleaning, coding, merging, and analyzing large and complex quantitative data files in SPSS, SAS, or STATA (including fluency in programming/syntax in one or more of these programs)

Experience with NVivo or other qualitative software a plus, but not a requirement

Strong understanding of criminal justice policy, including an ability to translate analytical and research findings into policy and practice recommendations

Excellent oral and written communication skills, with the ability to convey complex research findings to broader audiences, and to develop clear, visually-compelling reports for government, non-profit, and private sector partners

Exceptional interpersonal skills with the ability to create and maintain excellent working relationships with government and community partners

An exceptional commitment to accuracy and attention to detail

Ability to work on a team, as well as independently

Experience in information technology a plus, but not a requirement

This is a full-time position with excellent benefits and is located in New York City. Salary range: $55,000–$80,000 depending on research skills and level of experience.

The Institute is recruiting an intern for summer 2018 to assist in ISLG’s communications work across the Institute’s various projects. This is an excellent opportunity for individuals who are eager for deeper understanding of communications-related work and government policymaking in New York City and beyond in a number of areas including criminal justice, infrastructure and transportation, government operations and finance. ISLG currently works in more than 45 cities on a variety of projects, including consulting and providing data oversight on the MacArthur Safety and Justice Challenge, studying the impact of fines and fees in the criminal justice system, building empirical indicator systems that measure and track inequality at the city level, performing in-depth government agency analyses that can lead to greater efficiencies and budget savings, providing oversight and grants management on the Criminal Justice Investment Initiative for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, as well other projects. For a complete list and more information about ISLG, please visit islg.cuny.edu. Junior and senior undergraduate students, recent graduates, law students, and graduate students are welcome to apply.

Position Description

Reporting to and working closely with the Associate Director of Communications, the intern will work on a range of tasks, which may include but are not limited to:

Assist in planning, writing, and managing email communications with subscribers

Collaborating with other staff on new ideas, approaches, and tools for communicating with ISLG’s audience

Other tasks as needed to support ISLG’s work.

Qualifications

Currently enrolled in a degree program at a CUNY school or graduated from such a program within the last year

Demonstrated professional and/or academic experience or knowledge of communications, public relations, public affairs, marketing, etc., especially within higher education, nonprofit, and/or government context

Interested in a subject matter related to one or more of ISLG’s issue areas, such as criminal and juvenile justice; infrastructure and transportation; government finance and budgeting; government operations & contracting; nonprofit governance, contracting, & spin-off; social service operations; urban design and development; higher education; and tax policy

Knowledge of NYC’s social service, criminal justice, and/or related system landscape is a plus

Good knowledge and understanding of available social media tools and platforms

The ability to understand and adopt ISLG’s “voice” (conversational tone, informed about the issues but able to talk about them in accessible way to others who may not know much about the topic but are interested)

Excellent time management skills and experience working in deadline-driven environments

Excellent writing skills

Ability to prioritize and work on a number of tasks simultaneously

Ability to communicate in a professional manner with colleagues and external contacts

Ability to commit to a consistent schedule of approximately 35 hours per week for the internship period (i.e. summer or the spring or fall semester)

ISLG is hiring a policy associate to provide strong value and process engineering and/or shared services expertise for a portfolio of work focused on improving productivity and performance in government operations. Projects within this portfolio enhance performance in government agencies through customized and easily implementable solutions that increase operational efficiency and effectiveness.

Applicants may also be considered for hire as a policy analyst or a senior policy associate, depending on their qualifications and prior work experience.

Position Description

The policy associate will work in a collaborative environment on a fast-paced team within ISLG and will be responsible for the following tasks:

Performing qualitative and quantitative assessments of all aspects of a public sector client’s operations

Mapping and designing (or re-designing) processes and systems that optimize operational efficiencies and enhance service delivery

Assisting in the implementation of a shared service platform for multiple functional areas in the public sector

Assessing and mitigating risk and liabilities for large-scale, government projects

Working with and analyzing large, complex datasets to create economic and/or operational models

Developing extensive, detailed, and methodological reports, recommendations, and other documentation based on quantitative and qualitative analysis that can be used by government agencies

Presenting complex data in a meaningful and effective way for government clients

Qualifications

An advanced degree in business, operations research, or a social science field with a strong quantitative concentration. Experience in lieu of an advanced degree in these fields will be considered.

Demonstrated subject matter expertise in any of the following functional areas: Facilities; Human Resources; Information Technology; Procurement; or other areas related to the public sector.

Experience in assessing the feasibility of, planning, designing, and/or implementation of a shared service center preferred.

Understanding of public sector trends and state and local governance structure.

Exceptional interpersonal skills with the ability to create and maintain excellent working relationships with ISLG’s partners, including government, foundations, and community partners.

Strong time management skills and experience working in deadline-driven environments across multiple priority projects.

Ability to adapt to changing demands and requirements as projects develop, and the ability to participate in collaborative project development with diverse internal team members and external stakeholders.

Excellent oral and written communication skills.

An exceptional commitment to accuracy and attention to detail.

Strong work ethic, sense of humor, flexibility, creativity, and a professional demeanor.

This is an exceptional opportunity to work hand-in-hand with government on important strategic initiatives, and to contribute to building a portfolio of work in an Institute with a talented and multi-disciplinary team producing a scientifically rigorous and impactful body of work.

This is a full-time position with an annual salary commensurate with experience. The position includes excellent benefits.

How to Apply

To apply, please submit a cover letter describing your qualifications and interests and attach your curriculum vitae via the CUNY Research Foundation at https://www.rfcuny.org/careers/postings?pvnID=VB-1806-002538. Questions may be addressed to info@islg.cuny.edu. Application review will commence on June 15, 2018, and continue until the position is filled.

The CUNY Institute for State and Local Governance and the Research Foundation of the City University of New York are an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity/Americans with Disabilities Act/Protected Veterans Status/ E-Verify Employer

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